1. The only scatter of pepper in the bowl of sugar was Ohio State senior linebacker Zach Turnure's startling lack of poise when he gave a cheap-shot to Army special teamer James Nachtigal with a head butt.

A personal foul penalty was called. Ejection for targeting for such a dangerous play in an era of concern for head trauma would have been more appropriate.

2. A critical time was the first possession of the second half, when Army exercised its deferred choice from winning the coin flip to take the ball. The Black Knights possessed the ball for 11 minutes, 40 seconds of the second quarter, much of it on an 18-play, 99-yard scoring drive.

It would not have done for the Buckeyes' defense to spend energy trying to halt another long drive on the field. But Army still ran 6:10 off the clock in going 39 yards in 11 plays, only to miss a 43-yard field goal with the score 17-7 in favor of Ohio State.

3. That drive began when a walk-on kicker named Bryan Kristan kicked off out of bounds, giving Army the ball at its own 35 and earning a titanium-melting glare from coach Urban Meyer as he trotted to the sideline.

4. Kristan was immediately replaced by Blake Haubel, who pinned Army's Kell Walker against the sideline at the Army 1. Walker raced completely across the field, turned the corner on a nice hesitation move, and would have gone all the way behind a convoy of blockers except for safety Erick Smith's tackle after fighting off a block 43 yards later.

5. Jim Tressel Punt Note of the Week: Drue Chrisman's 33-yard punt from the Army 34 in the first half on fourth-and-7 was perceived as lack of faith by OSU coaches in the offense.

It was downed at the Army 1 and turned into a crisis of confidence for the Buckeyes defense, which gave up the 99-yard scoring drive.

But somewhere, punt-fetishist and former Ohio State coach Jim Tressel just had to be giddy.

6. There was only one turnover, a lost fumble by Army. Unfortunately, that is not the formula for a 30.5-point underdog to take down a heavy favorite.

7. J.K. Dobbins didn't have the breakout game against national power Oklahoma (72 yards on 13 carries, one TD) to threaten 2002's Maurice Clarett status yet for impact as a true freshman at running back. Without Clarett, there would have been no national championship in '02, Tressel's second year at the helm.

Dobbins now has 425 yards on 55 carries and four touchdowns, with an average gain of 7.7 yards, and the LaGrange, Texas, flash demands attention.

Especially from his own coaches.

8. I'm sure we will all worry about J.T. Barrett's long passing again someday. It might not be until the Penn State game unless you think Maryland, which beat the Texas Longhorns, 51-41, on the road in the Terps' opener, is for real.

The other games include UNLV next week, but not in basketball, at Rutgers and at Nebraska, which lost to the MAC's Northern Illinois at home Saturday.

Penn State arrives Oct 28, after OSU has an open date. This year, the Nittany Lions will be coming off a game against Michigan.

Last year, Penn State had an open date before playing the Buckeyes and so did Wisconsin, which lost to the Buckeyes in Madison in OT the week before.

9. As usually happens wherever a military academy plays, the Ohio State crowd gave a warm hand to the Black Knights before the game started.

I think the finest moment of the sometimes raucous Buckeye fans was in 2011, one week after the repulsive Jerry Sandusky's child molestation scandal cost the hypocrite Joe Paterno his job at Penn State.

To their immense credit, in a season in which Ohio State players had been treated as national pariahs for accepting free or discounted tattoos in return for game memorabilia, the crowd cheered the innocent Penn State players when they ran onto the field at the Shoe.

The OSU violations were a parking ticket, compared to Penn State. But the fans correctly realized that the players, like the media, faculty and everyone but top Penn State administrators, had been unaware of the atrocities.

It was one of my favorite Ohio State moments.

10. Reader Mike Deneen argues that Army, Navy and Air Force already have huge media attention, and they certainly don't need Ohio State or other powers to promote themselves. Scholarships are funded by each military branch in exchange for student's service after graduation. A paycheck from 109,000 seat Ohio Stadium is not to be sneezed at.